Seating construction

ABSTRACT

A seating construction especially adapted for use in automotive seats consisting of a deck member which is generally planar except for side wings which are angled upwardly and outwardly to form bolster supports, and which constitutes a stiff but resilient border wire having spring cross wires extending foreand-aft thereacross and affixed to the border wire, the deck member being affixable at its forward edge to a rigid seating frame, and resilient, forwardly and downwardly yieldable springs for attaching the rearward edge of the deck member to the frame.

United States Patent 11 1 1111 3,860,287

Platt 1 Jan. 14, 1975 SEATING CONSTRUCTION 3,610,688 10/1971 Arnold 5/354 [751 Inventor: Frederick PM, Rochester, Mich- 332153332 3/133; 33325111., ..,.:i::j:.??.7.. 5'/ 3sl 73] Assigneez Fkxmiators, Inc, Carthage, 3,639,002 2/1972 Tischler.... 297/DlG. 1 3,713,696 l/l973 Dudley 1. 297/DlG. l [22] Filed: Aug. 28, 1972 21 App} 2 4,22 Primary Examiner-Paul R. Gilliam Attorney, Agent, or Firm-John A. Hamilton [52] US. Cl. 297/452 511 Int. Cl A47C 27/14, A47C 27/22 [57] ABSTRACT [58] Field 0f Search 5/354; A seating construction especiallyadapted for use in 1 automotive seats consisting of a deck member which is generally planar except for side wings which are an- [56] References Cited gled upwardly and outwardly to form bolster supports, UNITED STATES PATENTS and which constitutes a stiff but resilient border wire 660,132 10/1900 Walker 297/452 having Spring Cross Wires extending fore'and'afi there- 2,567,550 9/1951 Clark 61 al. 5/354 across and affiXed t0 the border Wire, the deck 3,170,220 2/1965 Doerer 5/354 ber being affixable at its forward edge to a rigid seat- 3,259,435 7/1966 Jordan 297/DIG. 2 ing frame, and resilient, forwardly and downwardly 3,462,196 8/1969 Arnold et al 297/455 yieldable springs for attaching the rearward edge of Arnold et al the deck membgr to tha frame 3,529,866 9/1970 Getz 297/452 3,586,376 6/1971 LeMire 297/452 3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures 4 4 I 4 f 1 \6 t1 2 i I 4 4 2 42 d J ra a .ifi g a l .22 I p J2 32 [Z I )2 PATENTED JAN 1 4I975 sum 1 or 2 PATENTEU 1 5 WEEK P m? 2 I SEATING CONSTRUCTION This invention relates to new and useful improvements in seating constructions, and has particular reference to a seating construction especially adapted for use in the one-person bucket seats which are presently in popular usage in automobiles. Such seats desirably incorporate bolsters, which are upwardly and outwardly inclined lateral edge portions of the seating surface, said bolsters tending to keep the users posterior laterally centered in the seat, which is of course conducive to better posture and comfort of the user, and these factors in turn contribute to greater safety of vehicle operation. Such seating constructions of course incorporate some type of spring decking, over which padding and upholstery layers are applied, or in some cases the spring decking is molded or encapsulated directly within a padding material such as natural or synthetic rubber or plastic foam However, the construction of the decking to provide the necessary spring yield and to provide the closely spaced supports required for the padding material, and to form and support the bolsters adequately, has heretofore presented a difficult problem, often resulting in complicated spring wire structures requiring extensive assembly time and hence expense, at the time of installation of the seat.

Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is the provision of a decking member for a seating construction of the type described which is very simply pre-formed of a single piece of wire fabric of a type already in common usage and easily available, which can be marketed conveniently as a completed unit capable of very rapid and convenient installation and mounting in a rigid seat frame, and which, together with its mounting means, provides all of the functions of spring yieldability, fully adequate support of the padding layers, and formation and support of the bolster wings.

Another object is the provision of a seat construction of the character described wherein normal loading thereof by a person sitting thereon causes the bolster wings," or at least the rearward portions thereof, to tend to fold inwardly, whereby to tend to wrap snugly about the posterior of the user. This action increases the users sense of positioning and security in the seat and also his comfort.

A further object is the provision of a seat construction of the character described in which the weight of the user tends to tilt the seating surface downwardly to the rear. This action constrains the user to keep his hips well to the rear of the seat so that his lower back is better supported by the back cushions. This tends to defeat any tendency of the user to slouch" by shifting his hips forwardly, increasing the comfort of the seat and reducing the fatigue often experienced during long periods of driving.

Other objects are simplicity and economy of construction, efficiency and dependability of operation, and ease, convenience and economy of installation.

With these objects in view, as well as other objects which will appear in the course of the specification, reference will be had to the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a seating construction embodying the present invention, with the padding and upholstery layers omitted,

FIG. 4 is a layout view of a length of wire fabric from which the deck member is formed.

Like reference numerals apply to similar parts throughout the several views, and the numeral 2 applies generally to a rigid seating frame. Said frame is open and is generally rectangular, including a front rail 4, rear rail 6, and side rails 8. Although formed of tubular stock as shown, it could be of any desired construction. Also, side rails 8 are, in automotive uses, usually mounted on tracks or the like secured in the vehicle body so that the frame may be adjusted forwardly and rearwardly and perhaps also vertically tilted, relative to the vehicle body, but these provisions form no part of the present invention, andd are not shown.

The seating structure contemplated by the present invention also includes a deck member indicated generally by the numeral 10. Said deck member is generally rectangular and overlies frame 2, and includes a border strand 12 extending about its periphery, said border strand comprising a heavy spring steel core wire 14 having a sheath 16 of soft, indentable non-metallic material such as twisted paper formed thereabout. Said border strand has a rear reach 18 spaced forwardly of rear frame rail 6, a front reach 20 overlying front frame rail 4, and side reaches 22 spaced above side frame rails 8. The deck member is generally planar and horizontal except for its lateral side edge portions, which are angled outwardly and upwardly, as best shown in FIG. 3, to form wings 24, which form and support the seat bolsters, as will appear. Extending from front to rear across the border strand are a series of parallel, closely spaced spring steel cross wires 26, each of said cross wires being of comparatively less rigidity than core wire 14 of the border strand, and each having its respective end portions securely affixed t0 the front and rear reaches 18 and 20 of the border strand by being twisted tightly about said border strand and then about itself, to form a knot 28. The soft, indentable nature of sheath 16 provides a good purchase for the cross wires, and prevents slippage of the cross wires along the border wire. The series of wires 26 extends all the way across the flat central portion of the deck, and at least partially up the inclined wings" 24 thereof, also as best shown in FIG. 3. Extending transversely across the deck member, generally parallel to and spaced equally between front and rear reaches 20 and 18 of the border strand, are a series of intermediate cords 30, which are formed of twisted paper or other soft, non-metallic material, without wire cores. Said cords are pierced by each of wires 26, at the point of intersection therebetween, and each end of each of said cords is affixed to the adjacent side reach 22 of the border strand by a hog ring clamp 32 or other suitable fastener.

The deck member 10 as just described may be conveniently formed of a single length of wire fabric as shown in FIG. 4, consisting of a pair of parallel side strands designated 18 and 20 to correspond to the rear and front reaches of the completed deck member, and consisting of paper-covered wires, said side strands being connected as described by a series of cross wires 26 which pierce intermediate cords 30. To form the deck from this fabric, side strand 20 is bent upwardly, outwardly and forwardly at points thereof corresponding to the ends of front reach 20 of the finished deck, to form reaches 34 defining the forward ends of wings 24, and side strand 18 is bent simultaneously to form reaches 36 defining the rearward edges of said wings. Reaches 34 and 36 are parallel so that the lengths of wires 26 can remain constant. The portions of the side strands, at the upper ends of reaches 34 and 36, are then bent to extend into overlapping relation generally parallel to wires 26, the overlapping portions being firmly joined by hog ring clamps 38 or the like, whereby to form the side reaches 22 of the completed border strand. Intermediate cords 30 are of course joined to side reaches 22 by clamps 32 after said side reaches have been established by application of clamps 38. The fabric as shown in FIG. 4 is already in wide, popular usage for various upholstery applications, and its applicability in the present structure represents a simple solution to a knotty problem.

The deck member as just described is mounted in frame 2 by engaging front reach 20 of its border strand pivotally in a series of forwardly opening hooks 40 affixed to front rail 4 of frame 2 along the top thereof in regularly spaced relation therealong, and by a series of helical tension springs 42 spaced along rear reach 18 thereof. Each spring 42 is hooked at its forward end around rear reach 18 of the deck border strand, and hooked at its rearward end in a hole 44 provided therefor in rear rail 6 of the frame. Said springs are installed with the degree of pre-tensioning necessary to provide the desired degree of support for the deck member.

It will be understood that the usual padding layers and cover sheets may be applied over the deck member by usual methods, the wings 24 of the deck member forming and supporting the raised bolsters at each side of the deck. Alternatively, the entire deck member may be molded or encapsulated in a resilient foam, of course leaving the rear and front reaches 18 and 20 of the deck border strand exposed for engagement by springs 42 and hooks 40 respectively.

In operation, it will be seen that the deck provides a spring base for the padding thereover, a soft, yieldable depth of movement thereof being supplied both by the resilience of wires 26 and also by the yieldability of springs 42. At the same time, it performs the usual function of a padding insulator," which prevents the padding in most spring structures from working downwardly between the wires forming the spring deck. This insulating effect is provided by the closeness of spacing between wires '26, and by intermediate cords 30. A spacing of about one inch between wires has been found adequately small with most types of padding materials. Cords 30 also serve to preserve an adequately uniform spacing between wires 26 throughout their lengths. The heavy weight of the core wire 14 of border strand 12 of the deck member provides adequate strength in the deck to support its wings 24 properly, so that the padding bolsters carried thereby are permanently held in place, but since this is a border wire only it does not interfere with flexure of wires 26, so long as the rearward edge of the deck is supported resiliently by springs 42. Since wires 26 engage only the soft sheath 16 of the border wire, and since hooks 40 and springs 42 also engage only this sheath, there is no metal-to-metal contact in or around the deck, and rubbing or grating wire noises are eliminated.

When a user sits in the seat, his weight causes rear reach 18 of the deck border strand 12 to be bowed downwardly and forwardly, due to the yieldable support thereof by springs 42, and since wires 26 themselves of course cannot extend appreciably in length, and are substantially immovable at their forward ends by virtue of hooks 40. The resultant downward bowing of rear reach 18 tends to pivot the rearward portions of wings 24 inwardly, so that they tend to press the padding bolsters supported thereby against the sides of the users posterior, which is desirable for reasons already discussed.

Also, the weight of a user tends to tilt the deck downwardly to the rear, encouraging the user to keep his hips well to the rear and to avoid slouching, also as discussed above. This rearward tilting occurs because the forward edge of the deck of course cannot move downwardly, while its rearward edge does move downwardly as springs 42 yield, and the tilting action is further enhanced by the pivotal connection of front reach 20 in hooks 40. The tilting action is also improved by the resilient stiffness of wires 26 themselves. By their stiffness, they provide that the deck will pivot downwardly about its forward edge at least to some degree as a platform, in that a greater percentage of the total vertical yield of the deck at any moment will result from the yield of springs 42, than would be the case if wires 26 were pliable cords or the like. If wires 26 were of pliable material, the deck would simply hammock" between its front and rear edges, and the tilting effect would be largely lost.

While I have shown and described a specific embodiment of my invention, it will be readily apparent that many minor changes of structure and operation could be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is: I

l. A seating construction for use in combination with a rigid, generally rectangular frame having front, rear and side rails, said construction comprising:

a. a generally rectangular deck member adapted to overlie said frame with its rearward edge spaced forwardly from the rear rail of said frame, and comprising a generally planar sheet of resilient material having a generally horizontal central portion and with its lateral edge portions angled upwardly and outwardly to form wings,

b. means for attaching the forward edge of the central portion of said deck member unyieldingly to the front rail of said frame, and

c. forwardly and downwardly yieldable resilient means for attaching the rearward edge of the horizontal central portion of said deck member to the rear rail of said frame, whereby when said deck is top-loaded at the rearward central portion thereof, the rearward edge of the central portion of the deck member will be deflected downwardly to cause a general downward tilting of the deck to the rear, and will be downwardly bowed intermediate its ends to cause at least the rearward portions of said deck wing members to pivot inwardly toward a vertical position.

2. A construction as recited in claim 1 wherein said deck member includes a resilient strand along its rearward edge, and wherein said means for attaching said deck member to said rear frame rail comprises a series of independently yieldable elongated resilient members attached to said rear deck strand at intervals along the length thereof and extending rearwardly therefrom for necting the forward edge of said deck to said front attachment to Sam rear frame rall' frame rail is operable to permit vertical pivotal move- 3. A construction as recited in claim 1 wherein said deck member includes resilient wires extending from front to rear thereof, and wherein said means for con- 5 ment of said deck member about its forward edge. 

1. A seating construction for use in combination with a rigid, generally rectangular frame having front, rear and side rails, said construction comprising: a. a generally rectangular deck member adapted to overlie said frame with its rearward edge spaced forwardly from the rear rail of said frame, and comprising a generally planar sheet of resilient material having a generally horizontal central portion and with its lateral edge portions angled upwardly and outwardly to form wings, b. means for attaching the forward edge of the central portion of said deck member unyieldingly to the front rail of said frame, and c. forwardly and downwardly yieldable resilient means for attaching the rearward edge of the horizontal central portion of said deck member to the rear rail of said frame, whereby when said deck is top-loaded at the rearward central portion thereof, the rearward edge of the central portion portion of the deck member will be deflected downwardly to cause a general downward tilting of the deck to the rear, and will be downwardly bowed intermediate its ends to cause at least the rearward portions of said deck wing members to pivot inwardly toward a vertical position.
 2. A construction as recited in claim 1 wherein said deck member includes a resilient strand along its rearward edge, and wherein said means for attaching said deck member to said rear frame rail comprises a series of independently yieldable elongated resilient members attached to said rear deck strand at intervals along the length thereof and extending rearwardly therefrom for attachment to said rear frame rail.
 3. A construction as recited in claim 1 wherein said deck member includes resilient wires extending from front to rear thereof, and wherein said means for connecting the forward edge of said deck to said front frame rail is operable to permit vertical pivotal movement of said deck member about its forward edge. 